Rooms and Apartments in Apulia

The Gravine, long and winding crevasses that furrow the limestone soil of Puglia, often offer breathtaking scenery. Many places recognize themselves to such an extent in this amazing phenomenon that they have formed an urban wall grafted into the territorial conformation, often joined by bridges and roads created ad hoc. This constitutes a real natural park for speleologists and a great cultural wealth for all tourists and residents.

Known all over the world, Massafra is deeply linked to its ravines and above all to that of the Madonna della Scala which extends for over 4 km., Dotted with caves, aromas, perfumes and a unique vegetation, rich in over six hundred plants, many of which officinal and medical. In the tuff of the ravines, in an attempt to find shelter and safety, people dug caves and made them homes. Thus the rock villages were born, among which the most famous is the one where the cave of Mago Greguro is born: a complex of 12 intercommunicating caves with working benches inside and about 300 niches used as shelves on which to store potions.

The territory of Massafra includes about 30 rock churches, also known as Byzantine crypts, datable between the 4th and 15th centuries AD, of considerable iconographic and architectural interest. The main crypts are: Buona Nuova, San Marco, Candelora, San Leonardo, Sant’Antonio.

In 1500 it was inhabited by the Pappacoda family who restored the ancient building and enriched the structure with new bastions and walls. In the 17th and 18th centuries it belonged to the Imperial family.

Currently the castle is home to the Municipal Library and the Civic Archaeological Museum of the Oil and Wine Civilization which can be visited all year round.

It is the main annual appointment. The Massafra Carnival, now in its 60th edition, has deep roots and is lost in the mists of time. The Massafrese Carnival is completely atypical compared to the others that take place on the Italian territory. It represents a winning mix of carnival events and impressive parades of allegorical papier-mâché floats.

The rites of the Holy Week represent for the city of Massafra a set of popular religious events that are very engaging from a spiritual point of view. All citizens and high political offices participate in religious events following the processions that plunge between dirt roads and lush ravines that highlight the feeling of faith and that linked to its traditions.

Massafra is also culinary traditions linked to the simplicity of the products used for the most typical preparations. Like the typical Apulian orecchiette seasoned with fresh tomato sauce, basil and ricotta cheese from the surrounding farms; or the pizzicarieddi (small dumplings) topped with local pecorino and spicy ricotta. Or dairy products such as: mozzarella, scamorze, caciocavalli, burratine.

Taranto has an ancient heart that beats between the two seas (Mar Piccolo and Mar Grande) and has earned it the nickname “City of the two Seas”. Always one of the most important base of the Navy, Taranto lives in close relationship with the sea which is the dominant feature of the city.

The majestic Ponte Girevole is its symbol, which connects the island of the old town to the new city by crossing the canal that connects Mar Grande to Mar Piccolo. It is opened periodically, by rotating the two halves on one side, to allow the passage of large military ships. Next to the swing bridge, in the old part, stands the Aragonese Castle, a great defense work. Taranto old is perched on an island that is connected to the new city by means of two bridges and entering the ancient heart of the city you discover the magic of very narrow alleys and bright squares, the architectural elegance of houses and streets through which it is It is possible to reach the Romanesque Cathedral of San Domenico with a Byzantine crypt.

Martina Franca, an elegant town nestled on one of the last southern hills of the south-eastern Murgia, dominates the enchanting Valle d’Itria, a splendid green expanse of white trulli.

The main attraction of the city is undoubtedly constituted by the characteristic historical center, which presents itself to the visitor in a spectacular maze of alleys and enchanting streets, where the splendid Baroque art winds and on which there are valuable mansions with stupendous wrought iron balconies ( to mention Palazzo Ducale), delightful and ancient churches (the basilica of San Martino, patron saint of the city, and the church of San Domenico) and characteristic open spaces. In addition to a rich landscape dotted with ancient “casedde”, the famous trulli and the typical buildings of the farms, precious evidence of industrial archeology, Martina Franca enjoys a vast karst area encircled by suggestive caves. From its strategic position, the city offers visitors a suggestive overview of the neighboring towns, beyond which the province of Brindisi and Bari stretches and, even beyond, the Adriatic Sea. Martina Franca also offers the enchanting Parco delle Pianelle, and towards green landscapes, to the south, dotted with vast vineyards, offering small oases of peace and tranquility for tourists. Martina Franca is therefore a very popular tourist destination also for its cultural vivacity, which finds its maximum expression in the now famous Festival of the Itria Valley born in 1975, which has always been the flagship of the city’s cultural activity.

The extraordinary town of Alberobello is one of the most unique inhabited centers in the world, which has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site thanks mainly to the presence of its picturesque trulli (there are more than 1000).

The trullo is a characteristic house of peasants or artisans, built with dry stone walls, on which a cone-shaped dome rises, closed by a pinnacle and covered, always dry, with concentric and sloping rows of smooth gray slabs local stone, called chiancarelle. The itinerary through which to discover the most suggestive alleys and corners of the capital of the Trulli, as well as its monuments and museums, starts from the Belvedere Terrace. Here the visitor, enjoying a splendid view of the historic center, dominated by cone roofs embellished with mysterious symbols drawn with lime, will immediately feel that he is in a city that is unique in the world. The route continues with a visit to the historic center of the Aia Piccola district, consisting of about 400 trulli, for the most part still used as homes. In the Aia Piccola, we also find the Museum of Crafts of Old and New Professions, where you can admire tools and instruments of the artisan culture of our land and the Oil Museum. Continuing in the historic center you then reach the House of Love, a monument declared a World Heritage Site, which is the first house built with the use of mortar and without the classic trullo shape. From here you can also reach the Minor Basilica dedicated to Saints Cosma and Damiano. Behind the church, there is the Trullo Sovrano, which represents the most advanced example of a trullo on two floors, in which, among hearths, kitchen tools and looms, you can still breathe the atmosphere of the past. Of particular importance in the historic center is also the Monti district, which has more than 1000 trulli arranged in seven different streets of incomparable beauty. Among these to mention are the Siamese Trulli, particular for their double shape. Here the visitor will be attracted by the skill of the numerous artisans who enliven the neighborhood with their shops until late in the evening.

Over the years the city of Matera continues to arouse amazement and to emerge for its landscape, according to many, enchanted. Matera, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993, has been defined as unique in the world for its configuration and its contrasting landscapes.

The Sasso Barisano, turned north-west on the edge of the cliff, the fulcrum of the old city, is the richest in sculpted portals and friezes that hide its underground heart. The Sasso Caveoso, which instead faces south, is arranged like a Roman amphitheater, with cave-houses that descend in steps, and perhaps takes its name from the quarries and classical theaters. In the center is the Civita, a rocky spur that separates the two Sassi, on the top of which is the Cathedral Basilica. Matera is the city of caves, entrenched villages, peasant houses carved into the rock, over 120 rock churches with Byzantine frescoes and great Romanesque-Apulian and Baroque churches, among which to mention the rock Church of the Holy Spirit, the Church of San Domenico and the church of San Giovanni Battista. It is the city that geologically recalls ancient Jerusalem and Cappadocia. It was the destination of many peoples and their masterpieces, but continues to be the destination of great actors and directors who find in Matera a suitable place to shoot their films. A place that has always been inhabited, where it is easy to retrace the history of Man from the Palaeolithic to today, from the Neolithic villages to the vast urban fabric of Civilization and the Sassi, where man has been able to use the scarce resources of the territory without destroying it, but integrating with them.

Sea, sun and nature in an overwhelming rhythm. The vital energy of Salento involves and fascinates, making the tourist the protagonist of an unforgettable holiday.

Like Salento, the entire province of Taranto, a land of landings and departures, has been experiencing a surprising cultural awakening in recent years thanks to the re-evaluation and enhancement of its traditions and its history, for the benefit of sustainable, genuine, completely invasive tourism. , in tune with the growing demand for a real dimension and still able to offer non-homologating or artificial experiences and sensations but in contact with an ancient and complex culture, but always pervaded by the strong spirit of hospitality of the citizens of the province of Taranto.

The Apulian cuisine is simple, linked above all to the work of the land, which has elaborated typical dishes with many flavors and aromas. The cornerstones of this gastronomy:

Oil – Wheat – Vegetables – Milk and derivatives – Fish – Citrus fruits – Vineyards.

EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL FROM APULIA

Starting from the Adriatic coast to the hinterland, Puglia is cloaked in splendid olive groves. The secular trees with their wide and dense foliage rise like monuments of nature from the ground, while the trunks, firmly anchored to the earth and often wrapped around themselves, express all their absolute uniqueness of strength and fruit. They are, in fact, the giants from which the absolute raw material of Apulian cuisine is obtained and now known throughout the world as EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL.

THE GRAINS OF PUGLIA

Since Roman times, Puglia was defined as the granary of Italy, and here the tasty cereal has proved capable of becoming the foundation stone of an entire culinary culture, becoming indispensable in most of the typical recipes of the area. The main areas of wheat development in Puglia, concentrate within them cultivable fields capable of spreading out as far as the eye can see, reminding each visitor of an ancient and bucolic panorama, that of the classic mills that work hard to create a tasty and delicious flour. a tasty and delicious flour, while the plantations grow tirelessly and with a bright yellow color.

ITALIAN PASTA

Pasta has had the opportunity to shape entire lifestyles, a poor dish by definition but representative par excellence of the whole Italian state. Currently hundreds of housewives create their dough by hand, giving life to hundreds of orecchiette and many other varieties of pasta every day made by hand , daughter of a flour polished by durum wheat that embraces the whole of Puglia. But also focaccia, pizza, bread, are all dishes that find their origin in the ductile cereal.

THE APULIAN TARALLI.

Unmissable on Apulian tables, Apulian taralli or Apulian scaldatelli are an excellent aperitif accompanied perhaps by a glass of red wine or a snack for a delicious break in the office. Their combination with cold cuts and cheeses is also very popular.

Typical of the regional gastronomic tradition , the most popular recipe is still the homemade one. Handmade by grandmothers with simple ingredients, taralli can be flavored to your liking according to tastes or desires for experimentation: onion, chilli, olives, fennel, pumpkin, poppy seeds, dried tomatoes and much more. The possible variants are many.

The important thing to obtain a good result is to follow step by step what is suggested in the original recipe for homemade Apulian taralli. The preparation is simple, but obviously your dexterity in making them.

THE APULIAN FOCACCIA.

There is no doubt that one of the typical dishes of Apulian gastronomy most appreciated by the Apulians themselves and by tourists who flock to our region especially in summer is definitely focaccia. You may be thinking “of course, but focaccia is made all over Italy, not only in Puglia” … sure, but the Apulian focaccia with potatoes is a whole other thing, seeing is believing.

An excellent dish to accompany meals or replace them on a day at the beach, perhaps accompanied by provolone and mortadella. It is said that these ingredients are “the death of focaccia”, that is the most suitable to be associated with this product, but obviously everyone decides to fill it to their liking. The preparation of the dish has a medium difficulty, but do not be afraid, follow our recipe and you will be able to prepare and enjoy an excellent and crunchy Apulian focaccia. It may not be like buying it in a Bari bakery, but the result will certainly be to your liking.

HANGING TOMATOES: THE ‘NZERT.

It is part of the Apulian culinary tradition, of those that have an origin that is lost in time, which has been handed down for generations and which tells a little about this extraordinary land, its colors, its scents, its simple life with a peasant vocation.

These are the “hanging tomatoes”, a typically Apulian way of preserving tomatoes, which allows them to be tasted even in the winter months, a bit like preserves and salsa . It is also the hanging tomatoes that have become part of the common imagination when it comes to Puglia. Hanging tomatoes are also called with the dialect word “La’nzerta”, coming from the rural world and indicating one of the healthiest and most versatile preservation methods, typical of Mediterranean cuisine.

THE MOZZARELLA OF PUGLIA.

Puglia is a region particularly specialized in the production of mozzarella which, thanks to its versatility, lends itself well to being eaten plain and at room temperature or as part of richer and more elaborate dishes. Famous throughout the world for its spheroid or cuboid shape and its unforgettable flavor, mozzarella – also known as fiordilatte mozzarella – is the main ingredient of a multitude of recipes. Mozzarella is a fresh and soft stretched curd cheese, with a long tradition and typical of the Mediterranean basin, due to the warm climates that have led to exploit the rapid acidification of milk and the relative coagulation necessary for its production.

THE APULIAN CACIOCAVALLO.

Caciocavallo is an ancient cheese, whose origins are to be found in different areas of southern Italy, where it is produced in different varieties that give it a particular taste. So let’s try to learn more about this tasty dairy product from the lands of our South, identifying the characteristics that allow it to be distinguished from other cheeses.

It is an uncooked stretched curd cheese, the production of which takes place – in the present – almost exclusively using cow’s milk: as an alternative to the latter, but to a very limited extent, buffalo milk is used. What immediately distinguishes this cheese from many other equally famous dairy products, is certainly its shape comparable to that of a pear.

LA BURRATA.

Burrata is a fresh stretched curd cheese, produced in Puglia, in the Murge area and in particular in Andria, his hometown. Although it resembles mozzarella, its texture is much softer and more stringy. Cloud-shaped, white, smooth and soft, burrata quickly became popular throughout Italy and then in the world, as one of the tastiest and most recognizable typical products of the rich Apulian culinary tradition.

it looks like a small bag of spun paste, white and shiny, about 2 mm thick. This hand-made bag contains a soft “frayed” heart of spun dough and cream called stracciatella. The name is not accidental and derives from the method of preparation, with which the pasta filata is “torn” by hand to form pieces (lucini) of irregular shape and length.

MUSSELS OF TARANTO (MYTHILS AND FISH)

Their breeding takes place by means of long chestnut wood poles (today often replaced by iron poles) embedded in the seabed and protruding from the surface of the water for about one meter; between the poles are stretched ropes of vegetable fiber. The rests are hung from these ropes, inside which the juveniles or small mussels of one or two cm are placed.

The production of Taranto’s mussels takes about fourteen months of waiting, starting from November with the preparation of the so-called beds, that is the rope grids. In March the beds are removed and the mussels carefully cleaned. At the end of March, the mussels are spread out in the sun to eliminate any microbes and proceed with the first grafting. Throughout the production cycle, grafting takes place 4-5 times. Around May or June the Taranto mussels are almost adult and therefore ready to be distributed on national and foreign markets. Before reaching the markets, however, the mussels are checked in the laboratory, purified and then packaged in special factories that guarantee freshness and wholesomeness. What makes Taranto mussels particularly appreciated on the international market scene is their intense and fragrant taste, a characteristic that is given to them by the presence, in the Mar Grande and Mar Piccolo, 60 meters deep, of about thirty-four sources of water. sweet of karst origin called citri which continuously introduce fresh water. The presence of citrus in fact determines conditions of low salinity, ideal for the metabolism of mussels. You can recognize the Taranto mussels immediately: the fruit is white-pink, with a scent of iodine and crystalline sea, with a full and sweet taste.

FRIED PARANZA.

The frying of fish also takes the name of frying of paranza which derives from the type of fishing done with boats that practice trawling, or dragging the nets from the bottom: these typical boats are called paranze.

This type of fishing is very common in Puglia where, as you can imagine, a good frying of paranza is never lacking at home as in the restaurants that prepare the majority of typical Apulian dishes such as fish soup and other tasty recipes. Mixed fried fish can be found already prepared in the fish market stalls and in Puglia it includes different varieties of fresh fish from local, poor and small cuts. In Apulian fried seafood, fish such as mullet (small), molluscs such as cuttlefish, squid cut into rings and squid, and crustaceans such as shrimps must never be lacking.

CITRUS FRUITS OF APULIA.

The southern sun has always helped the cultivation of citrus fruits, so the countryside of the Apulian hinterland is painted with the warm and bright tones of citrus groves. The areas in which it is easier to come across their scents and colors are certainly those of the Taranto province, among which, the most important for the massive production and export are for example Palagiano, Massafra, Ginosa and Castellaneta. Suffice it to say that in territories like these, the areas dedicated to citrus groves exceed 7,000 hectares, in a nutshell, alone are enough to cover 80% of the entire production throughout Puglia.

Among the numerous types of citrus fruits that manage to find fertile soil and above all a greater diffusion in Puglia are the Washington, Moro and Tarocco oranges. The common mandarins suffered a moment of decline in interest due to the enormous offer, however the Clementines of the Gulf of Taranto were very appreciated, also awarded the DOP mark in 2003. This variety was much preferred to other types of mandarins and mandaranci especially because they are bigger, with juicy pulp and the total absence of seeds and seeds inside! Lemon is widely cultivated, produced and exported, especially in the Monachello, Interdonato and Femminiello varieties, easily available in the Gargano area.

THE FIGS.

Whoever crosses the Apulian territory today can only see what remains of an ancient cultivation system linked to the fig tree, but can still see, by paying attention, the signs of a rural landscape closely linked to this species; witness of a traditional culture now in abandonment we find it associated with olive trees, almond trees but also with vegetable crops, and still in sparse fig groves along the coastal areas of the lower and upper Salento, on the Murge, in the Piana di Bari, in the vast Foggia table.

Both the Ionian and the Adriatic coasts offer in this sense all the signs of an archaic environment, where the fig is still part of its old landscape, albeit fragmented by the many buildings and the “new green” of questionable ornament. Right between the spaces left alive and motionless, among the white rocks of the cliff, there are rock constructions that had a lot to share with the fig tree. The furnieddhi, ancient dry stone ovens for cooking figs, mantagnate, dry stone walls built to protect the plants from the salty wind along the coast or from cold winds in the hinterland, spase, littere, piles of minute stones used for drying on dry herbs or reed racks. Within the small plots of land we find ficazzani, white and black culummi, maranciana and above all rizzeddha, resistant to the extreme conditions of the coast and here the absolute master of the varieties to be dried; even more than the omnipresent doctorate who flees from here in search of better land in the Apulian hinterland.

PUGLIESE GRAPES.

Grapes are one of the most extraordinary products that our beautiful land of Puglia offers us. We consume it with pleasure both in its table version and for vinification, giving life to wines that every year become more and more protagonists of the wine scene not only in Italy but also internationally.

Just think that just a few weeks ago, the pop star Madonna celebrated a rosé wine from Puglia in one of his tweets sent directly from his bathtub! But let’s get to us. In Puglia there are also many allochthonous vines, that is, not native to this region, but which find here an ideal habitat to grow and mature conveniently. Let’s mention a few: Malvasia, Verdeca, Susumaniello, Ottavianello, Bianco d’Alessano, Verdeca. Even if grapes are the undisputed queen in terms of winemaking, you should know that here in Puglia they also find other uses. An exceptional product is the cooked must, also called Vincotto or in Salento cuettu. It is excellent on ice cream, on junket, on meat, as a garnish for desserts and much more. A classic use is to serve vincotto with pittule, exquisite balls of bread dough fried in boiling oil.

NATIVE WINES: NEGROAMARO, NERO DI TROIA, PRIMITIVO.

Negroamaro is a purely Salento and very ancient vine. It seems to have been brought here between the eighth and seventh centuries BC by the Greeks. If in Latin “niger” means black, also in Greek “mavrus” means black: the etymology therefore leaves no room for interpretation!

Its grapes are black and the bunch is small and compact. It is a very heat resistant plant, and this explains why it thrives so well in this extreme strip of land of our beautiful country. Its skins are rich in polyphenols. It is used for the production of red wines but also of pleasant rosé wines, both alone and in combination with other grape varieties.

Black of Troy.

Also called Uva di Canosa, Nero di Troia seems to have Hellenic origins, like negroamaro. It seems that Diomede, Ulysses’s best friend, arrived in present-day Puglia following the war and has brought with him some examples of this vine. However, some scholars hypothesize that the vine in question already existed in the area and that the local populations (Dauni) were perfectly able to make wine from it. Nero di Troia is a grape variety that grows indigenous to all of central-northern Puglia. There are two varieties, called biotypes, that of Canosa (or Ruvo) and that of Barletta. Among the Apulian autochthonous vines, Nero di Troia is the last to reach maturity: the harvest takes place at the end of October: the risks are not lacking, as the climate, for that period of the year, could reserve unpleasant surprises. As far as winemaking is concerned, in the past, the presence of considerable quantities of tannins in its skins was obviated by creating a blend (or a mix) with Montepulciano vines. Recently, however, behind the need and the will to affirm the identity of the Puglia region on the wine market, an attempt was made to produce as little blend as possible and to develop a 100% Nero di Troia wine, an experiment that we can define very well. succeeded.

Primitivo

It too is indigenous to Puglia and almost exclusively present in Puglia. It was an Apulian priest from Gioia del Colle who studied this vine in the eighteenth century and assigned it the name of Primitivo . Unlike Nero di Troia, the primitive is the first to mature, and this explains his name. Moreover, you will be intrigued to know that in the United States of America there is a vine almost identical to Primitivo, called Zinfandel. But it doesn’t end there: even in Croatia there seem to be some genetically identical vines to Primitivo. In general, it is worth knowing that Primitivo is a fairly delicate variety, as it is prone to mold and not very resistant to drought, as well as to frosts. Its clusters are generously sugary, therefore the primitivo always produces vines with a fairly high alcohol content. Therefore, it has always been used as a “blending” wine and sent elsewhere in Italy or Europe to create a blend. Recently, however, the Apulian taste for indigenous varieties has been rediscovered and, thanks to the region’s desire for affirmation in the international wine scene, absolutely noteworthy pure wines have been created.